Well we continue building the new Communal Building. Progress has been slow to date but now we are stepping up the progress. The west stone wall is complete and we have framed and roofed the north flat roof. Next we will built the fireplace, set the 2 south sliding glass doors, which are on site, and frame and roof the south sloping roof. Our goal now is to be closed in within 6 weeks.

This building will be a welcome addition to our 2 BnB rooms allowing guests to prepare food on their own, have a living room atmosphere to relax in and a private patio with a fantastic view up Mescal Canyon. We are anticipating to now be complete before the cool weather sets in.

We will keep you posted!

]]>Progress Continues on our New Community Buildinghttp://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2015/01/12/progress-continues-on-our-new-community-building/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Mon, 12 Jan 2015 22:35:59 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=478Well we have continued slowly on this new building here at Mescal Canyon Retreat. The native stone walls continue to go vertical and now the “Earth Friendly” insulated concrete form walls have started to go up. We will be grouting those walls and pouring part of the floor slab later this week (1-18-2015).The building has gone up slower than we anticipated due to our outside commitments but progress is now underway. For those who are not aware we are building a new community building which will provide a living/eating/cooking area for our guests. it will include a fireplace and outdoor deck that looks up Mescal Canyon. We anticipate completion by this summer.
]]>Building on Our Strengthshttp://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2013/11/23/building-on-our-strengths/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Sat, 23 Nov 2013 23:38:01 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=430See image gallery at mescalcanyonretreat.com]

The evolution of Mescal Canyon Retreat has been organic in many ways. The property has evolved from a homestead site situated in a desert wash, to a small home and garden plot with a couple of solar panels, then to multiple buildings and a larger garden beds, then came the addition of the Cedar Studio and more solar panels, and on and on. The transformation has been incremental, but the motivation has been the same: the idea that self-sufficient and sustainable places are created through a labor of love and a commitment to create a built environment that compliments and responds to nature. Change is constant here and every season brings a new opportunity to make this place better.

One of the exciting projects happening at Mescal Canyon Retreat this fall and winter is the construction of a new building on the property. Over the past few years of operating the Bed & Breakfast on the property, many of our guests have expressed interest in use of a kitchen. We have also seen, especially during the winter months, the need to offer our guests the option to have breakfast inside. Rennie designed a new space in response to the needs for our Bed & Breakfast to grow and physically expand. This new buildling will allow us to offer visitors a communal space where they can relax indoors, have a place to sit with a book and cup of tea, or a space to meditate or practice yoga during their visit.

Many of you who have visited our Bed & Breakfast know that the two rooms each face a courtyard and have their own seating areas. The Sage Room opens up to a small lawn and seating area, and a larger, gravel courtyard to the southwest of. The larger courtyard will be the site for this new building. We started gathering materials and began preliminary construction of the foundation in November. We will be using the same rock wall construction technique that is found on all of the buildings on the property and we were lucky to be able to source nearly all of the rock for this building locally, from the adjacent property.

You can see the beginnings of this transformation in the images here. Over the next few months, we will continue to post progress of the building’s construction. We think you’ll love it and we can’t wait to have you here!

Olive trees are beautiful. Their thin, silvery leaves and the smooth bark on the sprawling branches make for a tree that begs for kids to climb up, and also an elegant appearance. Since the Verde Valley’s climate is similar to certain places in Italy, olive trees do well here. The trees here at Candlewood are certainly doing well here, too!

Over the past week, we harvested over 10 pounds of olives for making oil and over 30 pounds of olives for curing and brining. This was the biggest harvest yet! But, after harvesting thousands of olives and after watching countless videos and reading dozens of articles on how to process olives into oil and for eating, we have a new found appreciation of the olive product that we cook with and eat every day. And we almost decided that it would be just as easy to harvest the olives and then fly to Italy where they have the processing method down to a literal science. A small amount of olive oil, as it turns out, comes from dozens of pounds of olives and hours of work, especially when you don’t have exactly the right equipment. The 10 pounds we harvested only produced enough oil to use for cooking one meal! Nevertheless, we enjoyed it, and we still have many pounds of olives to cure for the coming months! We are salt curing, water curing and brining olives to have and share with our guests… we invite you to come try them!

]]>Summer to Fallhttp://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2013/09/23/summer-to-fall/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Mon, 23 Sep 2013 16:06:15 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=419The Fall Equinox is upon us and we finally feel like a change is truly in the air. Fall is typically a busy time of year for us at Mescal Canyon Retreat… we’ve already planted our fall garden and we have lots of visitors coming from all around the country, and world! Before we turn toward our fall activities, however, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on some of the incredible people we met over the summer. We were very fortunate to have some wonderful guests from all over the country that made this summer very special… we’ve met the most interesting people and we feel that the time we spend together here at Mescal Canyon Retreat is something special.

Here are some comments from some of our amazing summer guests. Thanks for making this summer great!

“This could not have been a more perfect and transformational eight days. GREAT location to slip out to Jerome, Cottonwood, the canyons, the red rocks, the desert, the art, the food, etc., but…it was truly a struggle every day to feel compelled to leave at all because this destination is so lovely.Butterflies, birds, bees, kitties, chickens, vistas, beautiful architecture, doggies, gardens, massage, stars, fresh food, alternative energies, incredible and beautiful folks who introduced me to more incredible folks. No road noise, no plane noise, no people noise…silence, peace and a breeze. Even the rainstorms were heavenly to experience in this location. I slid in late with my soul on empty and left with my glass overflowing and trying to give back as much as I had received.” Stephanie, September 2013

“Gorgeous, peaceful and private location. Very aesthetic and comfortable lodging. Our stay was short so we did not get to spend time with the hosts, but the welcome was warm and the fresh-from-the-garden herbs and eggs from the hens breakfast was wonderful and attentively served. We had a truly relaxing visit and would definitely book it for our next Verde Valley visit!” Toni, August 2013

“Our stay at Mescal Canyon Retreat was superb. The location and architecture meld seamlessly – a haven resting between sky and canyon. We were delighted by a lovely view of the stars, birdsong, and very happy dogs. On a road-trip cross country we could only stay one night, but if we were back in the region, we’d definitely consider staying there again.” Paul, June 2013

]]>Introducing Mescal Canyon Retreat at Candlewoodhttp://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2013/08/25/introducing-mescal-canyon-retreat-at-candlewood/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Sun, 25 Aug 2013 15:44:23 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=4102013 brought new changes to Candlewood. In the spring, we were surprised to receive a letter from Candlewood Suites, a corporate hotel chain based in Atlanta. They wrote us to tell us that our use of the name Candlewood for our Bed & Breakfast conflicted with their right to the name Candlewood for their hotel chain. We were surprised that a national corporate chain found our Bed & Breakfast in rural Arizona a threat to them. And despite the inconvenience, we understood that this was happening for a reason. We took the opportunity to reinvent ourselves, by name.

For 30 years, we have always called our home and this property Candlewood, and we will continue to call it just that. Our Bed & Breakfast, however, is now Mescal Canyon Retreat. We chose this name because, in fact, Candlewood sits in Mescal Canyon, an off-the-beaten-path part of the Verde Valley that lies at the base of Mingus Mountain. We wanted to keep our tie to place as much as possible, and honor the surrounding beauty that drew us to this place originally. For those of you who have been here in the past, you’ll find that little has changed here except for the name. For those who will come for the first time, you’ll find that the peace and quiet of Candlewood will make your stay at Mescal Canyon Retreat one to remember.

We invite you all to Candlewood for a stay with us at Mescal Canyon Retreat!

‘Tis the season for harvesting grapes in the Verde Valley. As you travel to the area’s many vineyards, you see that the growers are hard at work harvesting many different varieties of grapes. We planted wine grapes here at Candlewood nearly three years ago and we’re close to the time when we can harvest our grapes for our own, boutique wine.

While we’re not quite to that point, we did have a tremendous harvest so far this summer! From only 4 of our vines we were able to make delicious wine grape jelly, enough to share with our Bed & Breakfast guests at Mescal Canyon Retreat and for our friends and family!

Even though you can’t drink wine directly from Candlewood yet, remember that fall is incredible time for wine-lovers to visit the Verde Valley. If you’re coming this way to stay with us at Mescal Canyon Retreat, remember to check out the harvest festivals in town: Sedona’s Wine Festival is September 18 & 29, Page Springs’ Harvest Festival is Saturday, October 5 and Alcantara’s Harvest Festival is Saturday, October 12. Join us this fall and have a taste of the Verde Valley!

]]>Autumn Anouncementshttp://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2011/10/09/autum-anouncements/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Sun, 09 Oct 2011 18:20:59 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=332Since it has been several months since our last post on the blog there are lots of things we have done here at Candlewood Retreat. The vines have been planted since May and 7 out of 100 did not survive the summer but the others took wonderfully. There are Montepulciano, Sangiovese,Malvasia Bianca, and our own rooted Petite Syrah & Negro Amarofor our varietals. In a few years we will be making our own house Chianti for our guests!

Because of well timed rains, many yellow blooming wild flowers and tall blooming grasses soften the hillside around us. The cooler nights bring good “sleeping weather” and the abundant sunshine and cooler days are perfect for hiking and exploring.

We’ve recently hosted a beautiful wedding ceremony at the Stone Circle in Mescal Canyon, with a reception after in the Cedar Studio & the newly weds stayed here with us at the bed & breakfast for a few days after. Thank you Nathan & Kira for honoring us with such a mile stone in your lives and it was a pleasure hosting such a unique, sacred & blessed event.

There have been some interior renovations on the Caretakers house and we also have a new Caretaker, Brandon Brooks, coming to us from the Lake Tahoe area. He’s helped in some of our fall projects such as turning the garden beds in preparation for the winter gardens, some of the work on the renovation to his cottage and just learning all there is to do here at Candlewood Retreat that makes us self sustainable. He has also agreed to do a monthly Caretakers Blog for us, so please come back to see what it takes to maintain a self sufficient property for off the grid living from the Caretaker’s point of view. You will be able to learn cool things too, like composting and gardening tips!

The nine hens are a colorful, harmonious flock and are giving us 4-7 beautifully colored eggs every day, which our guests appreciate in their breakfast omelets and frittata’s.

Blue Dragon Belly Dance is gearing up for our fall/winter season of performances with new moves and new look; lots of feathers! We’ll be opening for the Major Lingo Day of the Dead concert at the Cottonwood Civic Center on October 29th. Architecture Works Green is holding its own through our economic downturn and looking forward to some future prospects.

Best of all, we welcomed our third grandchild into the family. Congratulations Maya & Jesse, on the birth of Silas Blue! Silas was born on September 24th, peacefully at home.

This is a good time to come and stay with us at the Bed & Breakfast to see a vineyard in its infancy stages, while exploring the up & coming Arizona wine country in Jerome and the Verde Valley, just one of the many things to do in the area.

]]>Viticulture at Candlewood!http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2011/02/19/viticulture-at-candlewood/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Sat, 19 Feb 2011 18:09:09 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=315Several years ago I put in five varietal grape vines just to see how they would do. Last summer my Petite Syrah produced about 30 lbs. of grapes (which I juiced). It opened my eyes to the possibilities of making our own wine, which I’ve been wanting to do for years.

Viticulture in the Verde Valley has been growing by leaps and bounds over the last several years. It turns out our climate here is actually very conducive to successful vine growing and local wines are beginning to gain recognition. Our local community college, Yavapai College is offering a viticulture certification course and an Enology (wine making) certification course. So there are many educational and experiential resources for the budding wine maker here in our area.

So this past weekend we’ve taken the first steps towards the creation of our own vineyard. We’ve cleared a plot of land about an 1/8th of an acre and are gearing up to build our perimeter fence so that the javelina, rabbits, squirrels & deer will not get all the fruits of our labor. We have ordered 50 Montepulciano vines which will be arriving in March. The plot will ultimately hold about 85 vines, all red varietals destined toward the creation of our own unique Chianti blend.

]]>Upcoming Newshttp://mescalcanyonretreat.com/2011/02/17/upcoming-news/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed
Thu, 17 Feb 2011 22:22:06 +0000http://mescalcanyonretreat.com/?p=296Candlewood Retreat will soon have a blog! Check back soon for the latest updates and news of our new vineyard!
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